Trump has come up with a way to make American children healthier: 128 ideas - and no specifics

The Trump administration released a report on Sept. 10 outlining a broad strategy to improve children's health. The document includes a series of executive actions and reforms aimed at combating the rise in chronic diseases. However, experts say the report lacks specifics, writes NPR.

Introducing the report, Surgeon General Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called chronic childhood illness "an existential crisis for our nation" and said the report's 128 recommendations were "historic and unprecedented."

Kennedy's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission identified four factors contributing to the rise in chronic diseases among children: poor nutrition, chemical exposure, lack of physical activity, and chronic stress, as well as hypermedicalization, the alarming trend of over-prescribing drugs to children.

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The report has drawn mixed reactions from health experts and advocacy groups, with many noting that its stated goals are at odds with other Trump administration moves — cuts to food aid, Medicaid, and research funding, as well as Kennedy’s own push to change vaccine policies — that could undermine public health.

“How can we make America healthy again if we don’t renew our commitment to ensuring children and other Americans have access to food?” asked Eric Mitchell, president of the Alliance to End Hunger.

"While administration officials regularly talk about the importance of nutrition, they and Congress have passed a plan that will throw millions of people off the SNAP food assistance program," he said.

Susan Main, an epidemiologist at the Yale School of Public Health and a former FDA official, said: “There is a general understanding that we need to address chronic diseases in the entire population, including children. And now is the time to act.”

But, she added, "the report says a lot of the right things about what they want to do. But the implementation plan and the resources are going in the opposite direction. And that worries me."

Diet and physical activity

The report notes that 60 percent of the calories children in the U.S. consume come from highly processed foods, often loaded with salt, refined starches and sugar. It calls for a campaign to promote updated government dietary guidelines expected in the coming weeks that will emphasize whole foods and reducing consumption of highly processed foods.

Maine supported the idea of ​​having a single definition of ultra-processed foods, but noted, "One definition is not enough. What steps do we take? We need to continue to reduce excess sodium, sugar, and saturated fat in foods now."

The strategy calls for new research on nutrition and chronic disease prevention, developing a standard definition of ultra-processed foods, lifting restrictions on the sale of whole milk in schools, and helping states limit the purchase of unhealthy foods through the SNAP program.

The commission also noted "unprecedented levels of physical inactivity" among children and is proposing to work with the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition to revive the fitness test and expand after-school activities.

There are also plans to educate about the dangers of screen time, an initiative to be led by the chief medical officer. (The Trump administration has yet to appoint a chief medical officer.)

“I’m glad to see that they’ve recognized nutrition and physical activity as two of the key health issues in the U.S.,” said Lindsay Smith Taley, a professor of nutrition at the Gillings School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “But what this report doesn’t describe is real, meaningful action that will help Americans address our challenges.”

Chemical Exposure: Warning Signs, But Pesticide Leniency

An earlier MAHA report, released in May, warned of the dangers of chemical exposure, especially for children, listing PFAS, phthalates, bisphenols, microplastics and agricultural chemicals.

A report on a broad strategy to improve children's health says: "Children are increasingly exposed to synthetic chemicals. This is leading to developmental problems and chronic diseases."

Kennedy, a longtime environmental lawyer, has often spoken out against the use of pesticides and herbicides. During the 2024 presidential campaign, he promised to “ban” some substances already restricted in other countries.

However, the current report makes few proposals for changes to pesticide regulation, limiting itself to a statement about “continuous evaluation of the current regulatory system.”

Dr. Philip J. Landrigan, a pediatrician and professor at Boston College, noted, "The report makes no recommendations for reducing exposure to toxins in food, other than dyes and heavy metals in infant formula."

While the first MAHA report spoke of "alarming levels of pesticides" in the bodies of children and pregnant women, the new document avoids such language.

"It appears that the pesticide industry lobby simply squashed the MAHA agenda," said Environmental Working Group President Ken Cook.

The American Farm Bureau, by contrast, supported the strategy: “We appreciate the commission’s willingness to meet with farmers across the country, listen to our concerns, and seek common sense solutions,” said Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall.

New "vaccine framework"

Among other things, the strategy calls for the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a new “vaccine framework,” which would overhaul the vaccination schedule. It is currently being drafted by infectious disease experts and a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory committee, recently revamped by Kennedy, who has appointed his own appointees — vaccine critics.

The report proposes focusing on "vaccine injuries" and guaranteeing "medical freedom," which could include giving parents more power to decide whether to vaccinate their children.

These moves have alarmed experts because they undermine a unified, science-based approach to vaccination. Kennedy recently ousted CDC Director Susan Monares and restricted access to a COVID vaccine.

The American Lung Association said: “The report casts doubt on childhood immunization schedules, undermining confidence in the science-based vaccine system. Herd immunity keeps children in school and protects the most vulnerable. The mistrust this document sows puts children’s lives at risk.”

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A hodgepodge of ideas

In total, the report contains 128 proposals, ranging from scientific research and legislative reforms to education campaigns and collaboration with the private sector.

But, as Landrigan noted, the document does not represent "any coherent plan to improve the health of American children."

"Overall, I would describe it as a poorly thought-out, chaotic, and disjointed hodgepodge of proposals reflecting Kennedy's personal preoccupations," he concluded.

Critics also point out that the report’s goals are undermined by current Trump administration policies. For example, the document calls on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to study the impact of air pollution on children’s health, but the EPA itself, as the Lung Association notes, “is dismantling its research arm and weakening key clean air standards, allowing major air polluters to skirt restrictions, worsening asthma and other chronic lung diseases in children.”

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